


Take My Hand

by anaraine



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-17
Updated: 2017-06-17
Packaged: 2018-11-15 08:16:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11226984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anaraine/pseuds/anaraine
Summary: This isn't the kind of intelligence Syndulla is expecting her to bring back.





	Take My Hand

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Zimra](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zimra/gifts).



Numa is bored bored _bored_ , idly stirring her cocktail and listening to Imperial gossip. Most of the intel she's gotten tonight has been useless. ( _Nerra_ would say that there is no such thing as useless intel - just intel that they don't know how to use yet. But Numa would argue that knowing Commander Stobet has a creepy set of dolls on display in his quarters it is pretty fucking useless.) Syndulla sent her here because she's less suspicious than a scarred old Twi'lek like him, but frankly, she's starting to think that Imperial clubs are less of a hub of untapped information and more of a cesspit of stupidity.

But maybe she's not giving them enough credit, and they've all received extensive training on how to keep their mouths shut when it comes to sensitive information, even while intoxicated.

She watches as a pilot falls off his chair, drunk off his ass, and decides that she was correct the first time. Cesspit of stupidity sounds just about right.

Another pilot moves to steal his seat, stepping on his co-worker on the way (who moans weakly, but does nothing more than flop his arm out of the way), and starts talking with the Twi'lek sitting on the next stool over.

Numa's been keeping an eye on her. They're not the only Twi'leks in the bar, but she is the only one that Numa doesn't know. Her skin is a mottled in a way that makes it hard to tell what her base color is, but Numa would put her money on pink. Though that's not very important when she starts leaning away from the pilot, who looks to be getting a little grabby.

The sigh that falls from her mouth is resigned. She knows she's going to end up getting yelled at, but she can't just leave the girl alone. Her chair scrapes along the floor as she stands, but the noise is lost in the general din of the club. She makes her way up to the bar, noting that the girl's lekku have curled in on themselves defensively, and wishes she could start a bar fight without drawing too much attention to herself.

"Hey," Numa shouts to be heard over the music, and both the girl and the pilot turn to look at her. The girl looks relieved. The pilot looks interested.

"Would you like to get out of here?" Numa asks in Ryl, her lekku twisting to give the girl a good idea of what she thought of her Imperial pursuer.

"Yes, please," the girl says gratefully. Her Ryl is perfectly understandable, but she's got a bit of an accent that makes Numa wonder how long it's been since she's spoken the language.

"Hey. HEY." The pilot looks like he's just bitten into a sour feen. "Speak _Basic_ ," he says, drawing the word out slowly like they can't understand him. "This is an Imperial bar, and we speak Basic. _Basic_."

If Numa were free to punch him in the face, she would. She would savor knocking his teeth out, and accept the scrapes on her knuckles with a smile. But there's always a chance that she'll have to come back here, and if not her, then someone else. Better to not stir up a nest of gutkurrs until she knew they could kill all of them.

Instead, Numa offers her arm to the girl, who squirms off the bar stool and dodges another grabby hand before sidling in close. She's a little shorter than Numa is, but she's solidly built. Could probably put up a decent fight, if she had a mind to it.

"So what's your name?" Numa asks, and tries not to relish in the jeers being sent to the pilot by some of the other Imps. Showing too much of her pleasure would just set them all on her, instead of making the pilot the new butt of their jokes.

"Shaeeah. Shaeeah Lawquane."

Well, that would definitely explain why Numa doesn't know her. If she was born on Ryloth, Numa will eat her _nerra_ 's boots.

"Numa," she offers in return. She's not foolish enough to give out her whole name, when the girl could be an Imperial plant.

Shaeeah smiles, and it brightens her whole face. "Thank you, for helping me."

"Yeah? Maybe as thanks you could tell me what you were doing in there."

Shaeeah's smile fades. "I didn't realize it was a place I'd need to be so careful. There were other Twi'leks in the bar."

Numa snorts. "Most of the girls were all there scraping up credits for their families by dancing or chatting up Imperial soldiers. Better to steal from the Empire than your neighbor, you know. And the rest of them were taking advantage of the better booze, even if they have to pay through the nose to get it." She flashes a quick smile. "Myself included."

"Oh," Shaeeah says, and glances down at her feet. "Is it so bad on Ryloth?"

"It's not great, but we get by," Numa admits. "Why? You thinking of moving here?"

Shaeeah shakes her head, and then looks guilty. "I'm looking for my younger brother. I think he came here."

"To _Ryloth_?" Numa asks in surprise. "What for?"

Shaeeah twists her fingers togther, lekku beginning to curl defensively against her back again. "I'd rather not say."

Huh. "Well, if you need a place to sleep you can bunk down at my place." She'll have to bully her _nerra_ into letting her bunk down with him, but he's still a soft touch for her. That he'll agree with her reasoning is just a bonus. Numa would prefer to keep an eye on the off-worlder so that if she starts causing trouble it won't be hard to chase her down.

Shaeeah looks at her suspiciously. "What do you get out of it?"

"The pleasure of knowing that you're not going to go back to the bar and sleep with that ass."

The giggle surprises them both.

"I think I have better taste than that," Shaeeah says, smiling shyly.

"His drunk friend wasn't much better."

"No, but I'm here with you."

Despite herself, Numa can feel blood pooling in the tips of her lekku as she flushes. "If you're coming with, we'll have to ride double," she says instead.

"Double on what?"

Numa clicks her tongue and her blurrg comes trotting out of the shadows. "This is Jor."

"Well, it can't be much different than riding an eopie," Shaeeah says.

Numa has no idea what an eopie is, but if Shaeeah is game that's good enough for her. "Hold on tight."


End file.
